U.S. Rep. Rubén Hinojosa (TX-15) voted for the Defense Appropriations Act.

“This bill is about keeping a promise to our troops and putting their needs first,” Hinojosa said.

“The Defense Appropriations Act keeps our commitments to our troops and their families by including a 3.4 percent pay raise for our military. We also continue to pay our troops an additional $500 for every month their term of service is involuntarily extended by the practice of stop loss. To keep our men and women in uniform and their families healthy, we invest more than $29 billion in the Defense Health Program and boost funding to support our military families with programs like child care, job training for spouses, and expanded counseling services.”

“This legislation provides our military with first-class equipment to protect our troops on the battlefield and make sure that our soldiers are well-prepared for any challenge that comes their way. It gives them the weapons they need to fight the wars of today and prepare for the battles of tomorrow. For the first time since the beginning of operations in Iraq, this bill also honestly budgets for overseas deployment and other activities in Iraq and Afghanistan for the upcoming fiscal year.”

“It’s absolutely crucial that our troops are prepared for battle with the best possible equipment, from body armor to vehicles,” Hinojosa said. “This bill makes key investments in troop readiness.”